Door guard or the like



o. J. SAUER 3,367,702

DOOR GUARD OR THE LIKE I Filed June 18, 1965 fiIT FNTOR. /J 04/1/57? .2 3,4 U5? ATTORNEY United States Patent 3,367,702 DOOR GUARD OR THE LIKE Oliver J. Salter, 700 NE. 80th St., Miami, Fla. 33138 Filed June 18, 1965, Ser. No. 464,921 Claims. (Cl. 29362) ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE A door guard for automobiles including a central member of channel shape having an internal longitudinal strengthening channel and a pair of end members or similar section. The end members have booked portions to clamp over the edges of the door and have shoulders to rest on the outer surface of the door for holding the central member spaced away from the door surface. The end members are held in clamping position by a tension spring.

This invention relates to door guards for automobiles and the like and has for an object to provide a door guard which can be adjusted and installed readily and which is capable of withstanding a substantial impact.

Another object is to provide a door guard of the above type which is suitable for commercial production.

Another object is to provide an assembly of the above type which is suitable for use, generally, as a guard or support.

Various other objects and advantages will be apparent as the nature of the invention is more fully disclosed.

The features of the present invention will be better understood from the following description taken in connection with the accompanying drawing in which a specific embodiment has been set forth for purposes of iilustration.

In the drawing:

FIG. 1 is a partial side elevation of a car showing a door guard embodying the invention;

FIG. 2 is a horizontal section of a portion of the car door guard on a larger scale taken on line 2-2 of FIG. 1;

PEG. 3 is a vertical section taken on line 33 of FIG. 4;

FIG. 4 is a fragmentary vertical section of the door guard taken on line 4-4 of FIG. 2;'

FIG. 5 is a vertical transverse section taken on line 5-5 of FIG. 4;

FIG. 6 is a vertical transverse section taken on line 66 of FIG. 4; and

FIG. 7 is an elevation taken on the inside of the car door, with parts broken away to show the mounting of the guard.

Referring to the drawing more in detail, the guard is shown as comprising a center member 10 having a front wall 11 and side walls 12.

An inner reenforeing member 14 is formed with a front wall 15 which is secured in contact with the front wall 11 and with side walls 16 which converge inwardly to form a partially enclosed longitudinal channel 17 in which a helical spring 18 is disposed.

The spring 18 is shown as covered by tubular sections 1 which, when the spring is retracted, serve to shield the same from dust or dirt.

The reenforcing member 14 may be secured to the inner surface of the front wall 11 by suitable means as by welding or it may be formed integrally therewith.

A pair of slidable end pieces 29 are disposed to telescope over the end portions of the center member 10. Each piece 29 includes a channel member having walls 21 shaped to slide over the walls 16 and the member 14.

The walls 16 and 21 are made convex and have a slid- 3,367,702 Patented Feb. 6, 1968 ing fit suited to impart rigidity to the guard. For this purpose the longitudinal edges 22 of the walls 21 are bent inwardly around the corresponding portions of the walls 16 and preferably engage the inner surface of the front wall 11 for strengthening purposes.

At its free end, an externally threaded sleeve 30 is disposed Within the walls 21 and is secured by a transverse bolt 31 over which the end of the spring 18 is anchored. A clamp 32 having a groove 33 adapted to slide over and grip the edge of a car door 34, is secured at the end of the walls 21 by a flange 35 which extends over the sleeve 30 and is held by a nut 36. The clamp 32 is formed with a surface 37 carrying a soft pad 38, such as rubber, which engages the edge of the car door 34 in the area of the door frame and spaces the remainder of the guard from the front of the door panel.

A reenforcing rib 40 having at its side edge a flange 41 is disposed along the walls 21 and may be secured thereto as by welding or may be formed integrally therewith.

A cover member 42 having a front wall 44 and side walls 45 is disposed to slide over the front wall 11 and side walls 12 of the center member 10. The side edges of the side walls 45 are turned inwardly to form flanges 46 and 47. The flange 47 is secured to the edge flange 41 by clamping rib 48 which is formed integrally with the flange 47 and a set screw 49 so that the cover member 42 slides over the center member 19 with the end pieces 29. A pad 50 of soft material such as rubber is carried by the cover member 42 in a position to engage the surface of the car door in the area of the door frame and at a point spaced inwardly from the pad 38.

Due to the spring mounting of the pieces 29 the above described guard can be applied readily to the car doors of various sizes by extending the end pieces and applying the clamping members over the edges of the doors. The spring tension and the grip of the pads serve to hold the guard permanently in place on the car door, as shown. The reenforcing elements and the shape of the telescoping members provide rigidity to absorb a substantial shock without injury to the surface of the door panel. Any such shock is taken up by the pads which are disposed at or near the sides of the door in the area of the door frame where the door is of maximum rigidity and pressure against the unsupported portions of the door panel is eliminated.

While the invention has been shown as embodied in a door guard for automobiles, the assembly is generally useful as a support or in some cases as an ornament which may be readily applied or removed as desired. For example two or more such elements may be applied to the lid of a car trunk to serve as ornaments or as a carrier. The elements may also be used as a removable support for signs or may be used as a support for removable window shades or screens or for draperies or the like. Various other uses will be apparent to a person skilled in the art.

What is claimed is:

1. A device of the type described for application to a member having a front panel and spaced side edges comprising a center member having a front wall and side walls and an internal reenforcing member carried by said front wall and having convex side walls forming a longitudinal channel, a pair of end pieces slidably disposed on said center member each end piece comprising a channel member having convex walls disposed to slide over and be retained by the convex walls of said reenforcing memher for imparting rigidity to the device, clamps suited to engage and grip said spaced side edges carried by said channel members and a tension spring disposed in said longitudinal channel and having ends connected to said end pieces for holding said clamps in place.

2. Adevice as set forth in claim 1 in which the walls of said channel members have longitudinal edges sliding on the inner surface of said front Wall for stiffening the assembly.

3. A device as set forth in claim 2 in which said end pieces include cover members attached to said channel members and adapted to slide over the front wall of said center member.

4. A device as set forth in claim 3 in which said channel members include longitudinal reenforcing members having side flanges and said cover members are secured to said side flanges.

5. A device as set forth in claim 4 in which said cover members include front and side walls shaped to slide over References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 3,243,223 3/1966 Hoshell 29354 2,675,983 4/1954 King 293-54 2,611,637 9/1952 Neslund 293-62 LEO FRIAGLIA, Primary Examiner.

PHILIP GOODMAN, Examiner. 

